How HERE Is Transforming FX Platforms
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Across capital markets, banks and buy-side firms are uncovering remarkable efficiencies thanks to interoperable applications and modernized, streamlined desktops. While much of the conversation has focused on equities trading, these same trends are now reshaping one of the world’s largest and most complex markets: foreign exchange (FX).
Why FX Has Lagged Behind
Unlike equities, which trade primarily on a handful of centralized exchanges, FX trading remains largely over-the-counter (OTC) and highly fragmented across venues and counterparties. This structural fragmentation has historically made it harder for FX professionals to modernize their desktop experience.
Most FX traders must juggle an array of separate applications—pricing portals, analytics dashboards, blotters, messaging, research tools—many of which don’t work well together. The result is an overloaded desktop that can slow decision-making, cause alert fatigue, and increase operational risk.
FX professionals consistently cite the same pain points:
- Too many disjointed apps and windows
- Lack of interoperability between tools
- Poor visualization and alerting for fast-moving markets
- Manual, error-prone workflows that distract from trading decisions
HERE: A Unified Foundation for FX
The HERE is built to solve exactly these challenges—giving developers and business users a secure, interoperable platform where all the tools they rely on can work seamlessly together.
By developing on HERE’s platform, firms can:
- Deploy new capabilities instantly without disrupting existing workflows
- Deliver consistent, high-performance user experiences across trading desks
- Integrate legacy and next-gen apps securely in a single unified workspace
- Streamline visualization, alerting, and decision support so traders can focus on the market, not on navigating fragmented desktops
Real-World Impact: BNP Paribas Cortex
HERE has partnered with leading global institutions to modernize FX experiences—among them BNP Paribas.
BNP Paribas’s flagship Cortex platform has been a cornerstone for FX professionals since 2013, providing access to liquidity, trading tools, and advanced analytics. As the FX landscape grew more electronic and workflows more diverse, BNP Paribas needed Cortex to feel as modern as the markets it serves.
Re-engineered on HERE’s technology, Cortex gained:
- A streamlined HTML5-based interface with faster, more intuitive workflows
- Advanced visualization and alerting capabilities
- The ALiX digital trading assistant for guided decision-making
- Real-time TCA, transparency, and in-depth venue analysis
These upgrades not only refreshed the look and feel of the platform but also enabled faster delivery of new features and updates, keeping pace with changing market demands.
J.P. Morgan eXecute
Similarly, J.P. Morgan leveraged HERE’s technology to deliver a seamless FX trading experience through its eXecute platform—empowering clients to access liquidity with consistent workflows regardless of the other tools running on their desktops.
Driving Industry-Wide Interoperability
To accelerate these benefits across the industry, HERE co-founded the Financial Desktop Connectivity and Collaboration Consortium (FDC3)—a global standard for application interoperability now embraced by firms such as BNP Paribas and J.P. Morgan.
The ‘Equitization’ of FX
Features like algorithmic execution, advanced TCA, and greater transparency—once largely associated with equities—are rapidly becoming standard in FX. The industry is moving toward more data-driven, electronic, and interoperable workflows, and HERE is helping firms lead that transformation.
The equities space has already demonstrated the productivity gains of an integrated, interoperable desktop. Now it’s FX’s turn. With HERE, FX professionals can unlock the same efficiencies—freeing them to focus on trading strategies and client outcomes rather than fragmented technology.